20 Dec 1939
Page 1
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This newspaper page contains 23 articles. Subscribers can read the full text of each article.
Newspaper
Grafton Sentinel
Location
Grafton, West Virginia, United States of America
Date
Dec 20, 1939
Page
1
The German liner Columbus, abandoned after a blaze, sent 579 crew and officers to Ellis Island aboard the U S S Tuscaloosa. Two sailors are missing as the derelict sinks, while survivors head for New York Harbor for immigration checks and possible detention if found to be navy men or armed.
The German freighter Arauca, chased by a British cruiser into Everglades harbor, may stay for two or three years according to Captain Frederick Stengler. Eyewitnesses said Orion fired a warning shot across the bow as the 4,354-ton ship headed toward the beach on its maiden voyage with 53 crew aboard.
Diplomatic sources assert the United States Argentina and Brazil offered armed aid to Uruguay to force the Admiral Graf Spee from Montevideo After tense hours before the ship complied the Graf Spee sailed and was sunk rather than face British forces Internment orders placed crew inland in Argentina with Germany bearing maintenance costs and officers allowed to stay in Buenos Aires until further notice Captain Is Prepared continues on page two
Washington dispatch reports chairman John D. M. Hamilton is unlikely to be reelected as Kansas Republican committeeman when the national convention convenes next summer. Kansas leaders, aligned with liberalism echoed by William Allen White, feel Hamilton’s eastern connections pull him from Sunflower State views. Continued on Page Two.
Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret Rose returned from Scotland to spend Christmas with King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. It is their first reunion with their father since early August before Britain’s war declaration. The queen had visited them in Scotland in October.
Two men held up a Clear Spring bank early today and escaped with less than $580. State police pursued the automobile bearing Maryland plates in a Christmas payroll disruption tied to a semi monthly pay distribution. About $21,000 in WPA payroll was set for distribution to county workers, with delays expected before the holidays.
Berlin dispatch reports Adolf Hitler left Berlin for the Christmas holiday at his Berchtesgaden home near Munich. The Führer traditionally spends Christmas Eve with more than 1,000 Old Guard party fighters in the Loevenbrach beer cellar at Munich, where he customarily speaks and they receive gifts.
Mrs Huey P Long widow of the slain Louisiana dictator appeared in Donaldsonville to support Gov Earl K Long in the January 16 Democratic primary. She praised the campaign with an 11 word speech as Earl Long urged unity against rumors of lukewarm support.
Carl Erickson, 25, an Illinois National Guard marksman, admitted shooting Herbert Wolfe, 28, in a garage on Sept 28 after evading a lie detector and a ballistics test. Detected by a roommate alibi, Erickson initially passed tests but later confessed to Capt. Thomas Harrison, who announced the case.
In Boston on December 20 Nina Flynn tells her three children that Santa may be ill and could miss visiting. Five year old Ronald visits City Hospital with apples, insisting they cure Santa. Doctors announce Santa in good health and begin early Christmas gifts.
Baltimore and Ohio carloadings for the week ended December 16 totaled 46 964 with 31 622 cars loaded on line and 15 342 reserved from connections. The week shows an 8 324 load rise over last year and compares with 47 352 loads in the prior week and 48 108 loads in 1930.
A unemployed young man warned he would end his life in a dramatic act at midnight on Christmas Eve to draw attention to unemployment. He signed as a disappointed American and pledged that if his death spurs work for one youth he would have helped more than in life. The Pittsburgh Sun Telegraph published his letter and sought clerical responses urging him to seek help. Continued on page four.
Taylor county teachers and other board of education employees are set to receive their December pay today, with early issuance to ensure funds are available for Christmas. County employees are also slated to get pay, enabling holiday shopping for the week ahead.
The American Federation of Labor and the CIO unite to press for higher unemployment insurance benefits for workers insured under the system. President Roosevelt expressed hope for labor peace after talks with CIO Leader John L Lewis, though no concrete breakthrough emerged.
Coroner reports Mrs. Nannie Porter, 31, of Milton, set fire to kerosene soaked clothing yesterday and died from burn injuries. A mother of five, she had been in an unbalanced mental state since her youngest child was born last May.
Charles Garner, already serving life for drowning his new bride, now claims he killed three men including an incident over an all night date with his wife to be. He told reporters in the Missouri penitentiary he preferred death to life imprisonment and prompted an immediate inquiry as officers probe the new admissions.
Ernest Kehler a 24 year old Canadian born boxer known as Ernie Haas was brought back from Toronto to face homicide charges for the December 5 death of Dr Walter Engelberg the first secretary of the German consulate. He arrived handcuffed to detectives at Grand Central station and a police cordon masked his face. Assistant District Attorney Michael Kern called the case settled though a purported 15 page confession claimed Kehler bludgeoned Engelberg to death in his Brooklyn home in a fit of blind fury after an offensive remark by the victim. Boxing circles describe Kehler as a moth infanrate fighter.
Washington dispatch reports a National Association of Manufacturers committee calling the Wagner Act and the NLRB a menace to national welfare. It urges sweeping changes citing false assumptions and biased administration. The story notes support from a House committee investigating the labor board and mentions an Inland Steel entrapment charge.
Maj. Gen. John F. O'Ryan told the National Republican Club that military men see a German victory in World War I as a real possibility. He urged readiness to join the Allies at the right moment and warned that a Nazi triumph would yield harsh peace terms likened to a Versailles version of a Christmas card. He criticized American business and civilian belief in Germany's inability to win.
San Francisco dispatch reports Judge J. E. White mailed Christmas packages to relatives in Indianola Ta. The first telegram said his sister was killed in an auto accident. The second stated his niece had died of injuries and the third reported her husband also dead.
Captain Hans Langsdorff, commander of the Graf Spee, killed himself in Argentina after the battle ship was scuttled on Hitler orders. The German embassy announced his death and said he sacrificed his life for the fatherland, delaying his plan to share the ship’s fate with his crew of over 1,000 seamen.
Helsinki dispatches report Russia’s drive in northern Finland blunted by blizzards and subzero cold as Finland calls all able bodied men under 40 to mobilize. Sources say Russian troops were pushed back near the frontier on the Karelia Isthmus while Finnish forces prepare a new line south of Lake Inari. Mobilization may add about 20,000 to Finland’s 400,000-strong force.
The Grafton Sentinel invites Roy Vandergrift of 216 East Main Street to attend tonight's double feature, Oklahoma for and Panama Patrol, starring Leon Ames, at the Era House Theatre.
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